Feeding device for seeders or drills.



No. 811,203. PATENTED JAN. 30, 1906.

' S. E. DAVIS.

FEEDING DEVICE FOR SEEDERS OR DRILLS.

APPLICATION FILED DEG. 1, 1905.

Fly. 2-

FEEDING DEVICE FOR SEEDEFIS OR DFllLLS.

Specification of Letters Iatent.

Patented Jan. 30, 1906.

- Application filed December 1,1905. Serial No. 289,782.

1'0 (r66 w/wm, it may concern:

Be it known that I, SPENCER E. DAVIS, a

citizen of the United States, residing at Minit appertains to make anduse the same.

My invention has for its object to provide an improved feeding devicefor drills or seeders; and to this end it consists of the novel devicesand combinations of devices hereinafter described, and defined in theclaims.

The invention is illustrated in the accompanying drawings, wherein likecharacters indicate like parts throughout the several views.

Figure 1 is a plan view of a feeding device designed in accordance withmy invention, some parts being broken away. Fig. 2 is a vertical sectiontaken on the line or x of Fig. 1. Fig. 3 is a detail in vertical sectionon the line 90 of Fig. 2; and Fig. 4 is a detail view showing theso-called feed-ring, looking at the inner face thereof.

The seed-containing receptacle is in the form of a cup 1, having anapproximately scmicylindrical bottom and a separately-constructed sideplate 2, and which side plate is rigidly secured to the body of the saidcup by any suitable means-as, for instance, by a rivet or bolt 3. Thebody of the cup is open, so that it may receive the seeds or grain froma suitable supply device, such as the seedbox of a drill or seeder. Inits front portion, just above its semicylindrical bottom, the cup isprovided with a transversely-extended discharge-opening 4. The sideplate 2 of the cup is formed with a large central opening 5, andsurrounding this opening it is formed with a countersunk seat 6. Workingclosely within the seat 6 and with its inner face flush with the innersurface of the cup side 2 is a so-called feed-ring or rosette 7, that isformed with radial seed-pockets 8 in its inner face. The peripheralportion of the feedring 7 works down into a nearly semicircular groove9, formed between the semicylindrical bottom of the cup and thedetachable side 2, as best shown in Fig. 3. The seedpockets 8 of thefeed-ring 7 extend radially with respect to the axis thereof, and attheir ends and sides they join the inner face of said feed-ring oncurved lines and without ab rupt shoulders. The importance of thisconstruction will be considered later on. The outer extremities of thepockets 8 are so located that when they pass through the lower portionof the cup theywill extend completely to the supporting-surface of thesemicylindrical bottom of the said cup. This is important, as it causesthe pockets to pick up seeds from the very bottom of the cup and,furthermore, extends the agitation which they produce in passing throughthe body of the seeds completely to the bottom of the cup.

A corrugated hub or cylinder having grooves 10 ,frequently designated asa feedbucket, fits in a corresponding perforation 11 of the feed-ring 7and is mounted to slide freely endwise through said ring while causingsaid ring to rotate therewith. The corrugated hub or bucket 10 ismounted to rotate and move endwise with the shaft 12, and which shaftreceives rotary motion and endwise adjustments in the usual or in anysuitable way.

Mounted on the shaft 1.2, adjacent to the hub 10, is a cutofl hub orfollower 13, which is provided with a radially cut-off gate or rib 14.The hub 13 and its gate or rib 14 fit and slide through acorrespondingly closely fitting seat in the integrally-formed side ofthe cup and are thereby held against rotation, but are free for axialadjustments. Said hub 13 is loose on the shaft 12, but is held forendwise movements therewith by a collar 15. The gate 14 inclinesdownward and forward, and its upper surface extends in a plane radiatingapproximately from the axis of the shaft 12 and intersecting the lowerextremity of the discharge-opening 4 of the cup. The cup above theopening 4 is provided with a short transversely extended segmental web16, which closely bears against the outer surface of the hubs 10 and 13and prevents the seed or grain from running down and out through theopening 4 in the upper portion of the cup. The feed-ring, it will beunderstood, is rotated in the direction of the arrow marked thereon inFig. 2. It is also evident that the p uantity of seed or grain that willbe fed rom the cup will depend very largely upon the distance which thehub 13 and cut-oil gate 14 will move away from the feed-ring 7. Inbrief, by axial adjustments of the hubs 10 and 13 any desired quantityof seed or grain may be fed or discharged from the cup.

As already noted, the seed-pockets 8 are 0f such concave form, beingfree from shoulders and angles, that they will not out or inch the seedsor grain when the inner end of the cut-oif gate 14 is adjusted closelyto or against the inner face of the feed-ring 7. It should be noted thatthe inner face of the feed-ring 7 is flat or approximately flat andsmooth, except for the shallow pockets or depressions 8, and that theinner end of the cutoff gate or rib 14 is so constructed that it may beforced against the said smooth face when only very small seeds are to befed. In view of this construction, even when the said cut-off gate ismoved into close engagement with the smooth face of said feed-ring, theseeds will not be cracked or ground, as is the case where feed-rings areused which have ribs that project from their faces. In Fig. 3 the saidoutoff gate 14 is shown as adjusted nearly, but not quite, into contactwith the smooth-faced portion of said disk. The concave form of thepockets 8 better adapt the pockets to dis charge the seeds, especiallysmall seeds. The radial pockets discharge the grain held thereby veryquickly after having passed the said gate. As said seed-pockets work tothe very I bottom of the cup, they not only better stir up the grain,but as they feed the grain or seeds from the very bottom of the cup theydo not tend to crowd the grain downward into the bottom of the cup.These shallow concave pockets are also better adapted to feed Texas catsor other bearded or fuzzy grains or seeds.

IVhat I claim, and desire to secure by Letters Patent of the UnitedStates, is as follows:

1. The combination with a cup having a curved bottom extending to adischargeopening, of a feed-ring working in one side of said cup andhaving in its inner face a plu rality of concave pockets that extendto'the face of said ring on curved lines and without angles orshoulders, a corrugated feed-hub mounted to slide through, but to rotatewith said feed-ring, and a non-rotary hub having a cut-off gate orflange, cooperating with said feed-hub and feed-ring, substantially asdescribed.

2. The combination with a cup having an approximately semicylindricalbottom extending to a discharge-opening, of a rotary feed-ringcountersunk in one side thereof with its periphery working in a seatextending below the bottom of the cup, said feed-ring having in itsinner face a plurality of radiallyextended concave pockets formed oncurved lines that join the face of said feed-ring without angles orshoulders, and the outer extremity of which pockets pass to the bottomof said cup, under a rotary motion of said feed-ring, substantially asdescribed.

3. The combination with a cup having a curved bottom extending to adischargeopening, of a feed-ring working in one side of said cup, saidfeed-ring having an approximately flat inner face formed with shallowdepressed pockets, but smooth except for said pockets, a corrugated hubhaving a cutoff gate or flange cooperating with said feedhub andfeed-ring, the inner end of said gate or flange being adapted for closecooperation with the smooth inner-faced portion of said feed-ring,substantially as described.

In testimony whereof I affix my signature in presence of two witnesses.

SPENCER E. DAVIS.

